The internet-famous dancing Spot and Atlas robots are BTS‘ newest dancing partners! Hyundai is celebrating the acquisition of the robots’ creators Boston Dynamics with a new collaboration video with K-pop sensation BTS.
BTS is currently the face of Hyundai’s IONIQ brand, so pairing the band’s beloved music to the charm of Boston Dynamic’s dancing robots seemed like a natural thing to happen.
But for those who missed seeing the band members dancing on screen, worry not. A second video was released that showed how the boys charmingly got along with the Boston Dynamics robots. There was even a cute dance-off between some of the members and the robots.
Interestingly, Boston Dynamics had to take a different approach in operating the dancing robots. In a blog post, the team details that the robots didn’t use its built-in sensors or obstacle avoidance algorithms that it normally uses. Instead, they had to precisely program the robots in advance.
As to why the company opted to make their robots dance, Marc Raibert, founder and chairman of Bostom Dynamics says that “an athletic performance like dance stresses the mechanical design of the robot, and it also stresses the algorithms in the software.”
It also forces the team to learn and develop new ways to achieve their goals. They were able to create new software for Spot owners called Choreographer. This program helped control their robots for entertainment purposes.
The companies are ultimately trying to get more companies to invest in Spot and the dancing robot technology. By using BTS and calling on its incredibly supportive and active fanbase, Spot may become more appealing to prospective buyers.
Currently, a single Spot robot retails for $74,500.